The Blue Jackets are awash in optimism. The 19-5-5 finish last season awakened a moribund franchise and fan base, and John Davidson’s “brick-by-brick” rebuilding approach has gone faster than even he anticipated.

The Blue Jackets will return five of their top six defensemen from last season. For once, that’s a good thing — especially considering that the sixth, rookie Ryan Murray, is a former No. 2 overall draft pick who, by all appearances, is ready for the NHL.

Sergei Bobrovsky has always seen himself as a world-class goaltender. It just took the hockey world a little while to come around. Bobrovsky, 25, carried a heavy load in the final two months of last season, playing in all but one of the games during the Blue Jackets’ 19-5-5 run to close out 2013.